Local Prince Learns He Has ADHD
by starspangledpumpkin
Summary: Elphaba and Fiyero get trapped in front of the library during a hail storm. Elphaba learns there's more to Fiyero's slacking off than she thought.


**Space Address: 3C - Hail**

**Word Count: 1066**

**Warnings: None**

~o0o~

Elphaba knew she shouldn't have spent so long inside the library. The weather was looking terrible all day and the clouds were looking greener than her own skin. They had plenty of twisters in Munchkinland and she knew the warning signs, but she had thought that Madame Morrible would have reversed this weather. How was she supposed to know the Head Shiztress was on an emergency visit to the Emerald City?

Now, the library was closed and Elphaba was standing in the shelter next to the library doors. She could have made a break for it, but she didn't want to get her school bag wet. She also would have preferred to not get her skull bashed in by hail. They were coin-sized by this point.

"MOVE IT!"

Elphaba was knocked to the ground by someone taking shelter. Blood boiling, Elphaba righted her glasses and glared at Fiyero Tiggular, Shiz's resident prince and party boy.

"This is the second time you've run me over," she snapped, shoving him off of her.

"First off," he said, "I didn't run you over the first time we met. Second, that was my driver who almost ran you over. Third, I thought I apologized for that."

"You didn't." Elphaba moved and sat against the wall, wincing at a particularly loud crack of thunder.

The hail got bigger. Hopefully Shiz was insured for hail damage.

"It's really coming down isn't it?" said Fiyero, picking up a piece that rolled in. "How big do you reckon this is?"

"I don't care." Elphaba glanced up anyway. "Hen egg."

"Yeah, I would've guessed that, too." He tossed it aside and rubbed his hand on his pants leg, before taking a seat. "Looks like we're stuck here until it lets up."

"Oh, lucky me," she replied, voice dripping with sarcasm. "All alone with Fiyero Tiggular! Somebody pinch me!"

"See? I knew you liked me!" At her look, he laughed. "Hey, I'm joking. I'm joking. But just so you know, I don't have a problem with you."

"Fiyero… everyone has a problem with me."

"Not Galinda."

"Yes, well, I blame the aerosol in her hairspray."

Fiyero laughed again. It was deep and infectious. Elphaba pressed her mouth to her sleeve to keep from laughing with him.

"I do mean it," he said. "I just don't know what your problem is with me."

"Do you really want to know?" she asked.

He leaned forward. His green eyes were startling against his brown skin and she realized they were complimentary. Green eyes, brown skin; brown eyes, green skin. Why was she paying attention to that?

"I really do," he said.

"It's not the partying," she said. "I get that some people get energy from social situations. It's the fact that you don't even _try_ in class. Not everyone does well academically, but to skive off and treat it all as some kind of joke? You don't even realize how lucky you are to get an education Fiyero. I almost didn't get one myself and you've been to five schools! That's what irritates me."

Fiyero nodded. "That's fair."

"Do you like people thinking you're an airhead?"

"Oz, you sound like my mother," he groaned, running a hand down his face. "No, I don't. But if you get treated as something for long enough, you start to believe it."

Elphaba faltered. She knew that. She knew that so well.

"I don't like books because the words float off the page when I try to read them," he said. "I don't like studying because I can't focus long enough for it to make sense. I can remember what I had for breakfast on my fifth birthday or a weird fact I heard once, but I the bullet points we went over in class? They don't stick. And I hate writing because my tutors ridiculed me for my misspelling. I mean, why are words so weird anyway? They have so many rules it makes me head spin. So, yeah, I stick with what I'm good at because no talent is required to party."

Elphaba regarded him for a long moment with fascination. She had no idea… and all this time she thought he was capable and choosing not to apply himself. She dug around in her bag and removed a book on neurological capabilities. Sometimes she liked to run her fingers along books and pick whichever one she was drawn to, without looking at the title.

"I read something about this," she said, crossing over to sit next to him. "This book mostly lists the symptoms in children…"

"Good, I'm a giant child," he said. "Just a child who can drink."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and flipped to the correct page. "Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD. The symptoms include not being able to sit still, impulsive behavior, along with executive dysfunction."

"Hey, I am regular thank you very much!"

"Oh, Unnamed God…" Elphaba pinched the bridge of her nose. "Executive function means that you can become paralyzed and unable to perform simple tasks, even if you want to complete them."

"Oh…" He rubbed the back of his neck. "I knew that."

"Mmhm…" she turned to the dyslexia page. "Dyslexia is a disorder that involves difficulty with interpreting words and letters. From the sound of it, you are a textbook case of both."

"So I'm not stupid?"

"Potentially."

"I'll take it," he said excitedly. "Does this book have a way to work around it?"

Elphaba hummed and flicked through the pages. "I don't think so… however, I would be very interested in finding out if there is. That is, if you're willing to put the work in."

"Honestly? Yeah. Besides, if these work for me, who's to say it won't work for anyone else?"

This would be a very interesting topic for an essay. While Elphaba was more interested in Politics, she was also intrigued by educational studies. The thought of writing a paper on educational reform for those who were being failed by the system captivated her.

"Alright," she said and offered her hand. "You've got a deal."

Fiyero took her hand and electricity jolted up her arm. Her heartrate quickened and he knees went weak. He stared at her hand in fascination, as if he felt it, too.

"Right." Elphaba let go. "We'll start… tomorrow?"

"Sure," he said and looked out. The hail had stopped and the sky was clearing. "Tomorrow."


End file.
